Under The Radar

Three years ago, Wall  wrestler Andrew Marr remembers having a premonition leaving Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City after watching Bound Brook’s Andrew Campolattano win a state title.

“I said, ‘I can't wait to wrestle that kid in the state finals one day,’’’ Marr said.

With the NJSIAA Individual Wrestling Tournament getting underway on Feb. 18, Marr’s quest for a showdown with a wrestler looking to cement his status as a New Jersey legend will begin with the District 23 Tournament, followed by the Region VI Tournament.

The goal is not to stop until he is staring eye to eye with Campolattano, a three-time state champion gunning for a fourth title, on the center mat at Boardwalk Hall in the 215-pound final on March 6.

“It doesn't bother me that people think I'm the underdog,’’ Marr said. “I would see me as an underdog too, but I believe in myself.’’

 Marr is considered to be Campolattano’s primary challenger to immortality, as Campolattano is looking to join Delbarton graduate Mike Grey as the only other four-time state champion in New Jersey history.

Marr is currently 18-0 and has a career record of 83-25, and he finished seventh in the state as a junior in Atlantic City last season, so he has experience in the crucible down in Atlantic City.

In order to send a shockwave through the state and deny Campolattano a fourth title, Marr will have to shake off the effects of a lingering knee injury that has limited his appearances on the mat this season. He has not wrestled in a match since Jan. 25, as Wall did not qualify for the NJSIAA team tournament, so he has used that time to get healthy while also preparing for the gauntlet ahead.

“If you whip out the little scale and figure out what's more important, getting rest and not irritating the injury outweighs being out there right now,’’ said Wall head coach Brian Fischer. “I think he's got enough matches under his belt where missing some matches is a slight setback, but not enough for him not to reach his goals.’’

“I was advised by my doctors not to really push it,’’ Marr said. “Luckily I’ve got great coaches I’ve been working with on strength and conditioning plans, keeping my cardio up, and staying sharp with my wrestling. I’m pretty comfortable right now.’’

There is certainly the question of whether he will be rusty when the District 23 Tournament gets underway after not having wrestled anyone outside of practice in several weeks. However, Wall has eight assistant coaches on its staff, all of whom are former wrestlers, and five of whom can match up with the 215-pounder in practice and give him a solid workout.

“I have a coach that benefits every part of wrestling I need to work on,’’ Marr said. “Also, our 189-pounder, Colin Egan is having a solid season and also is a good workout partner.’’

“He's a beast to take down,’’ said Fischer, who wrestled at Millersville University. “Not many guys can take him down. I hate to admit this as a coach, but I have to go all out to take him down. If my technique isn’t right, he drops his hips on me and crushes me.’’

Marr’s strength is on his feet, where he is quick enough to not only fight off any takedown attempts but can quickly turn them into takedowns of his own. Creating his own offense is one area he has worked to improve.

“I’ve been working more on scoring on my feet and initiating my shots instead of scoring off other's mistakes,’’ Marr said. “I’ve also worked on having a sense of urgency on bottom that no one's going to keep me down there.’’

Marr’s biggest obstacle in the Region VI Tournament, where he is the defending champion, looks to be Marlboro’s Mitch Seigel, whom Marr is 2-0 against in his career. Seigel pushed Campolattano, who was already a state-record 155-1 in his career heading into the bout, to the brink in a 5-3 loss in the New Jersey Wrestling Coaches All-Star Invitational on Jan. 30.

Sitting nearby and taking notes during that bout was Marr, who was originally supposed to be wrestling Campolattano in that match before sitting out because of his knee injury.

“I’ve never had a common opponent with (Campolattano), so it was cool to have that kind of breakdown to watch that match, and things to pick apart,’’ Marr said.

“There's so much tape out there on 'Camp,'’’ Fischer said. “There's enough tape out there where everybody has an angle. You just need to keep the match close, and give yourself a shot.’’

Marr, who attends Communications High School in Wall, will continue his wrestling career at Rider University, so with that decision out of the way, all his energy is focused on stealing the headlines in Atlantic City.

“If he gets down to Atlantic City, there's no pressure on him,’’ Fischer said. “He’s already signed to Rider, so there's no pressure where if he doesn't do well, he's not getting signed by a college. Given everything, I wouldn't want it any other way.’’

Marr knows the talk won’t be about him before the event, so the goal is to make sure it will be about him at the end by realizing a dream he had as a freshman three years ago.

“I’ve always kind of had a career under the radar,’’ Marr said. “If you go search ‘Campolattano’ on a wrestling website, you’ll find a multitude of videos and opinions, but you can't let all that stuff influence you.

“If I make it that far, all the other stuff won’t matter. It’s going to just be me and him out there. At that point, anything can happen.’’